Renewable

Energy Sources

New wind farm in 2007:

The Apollo Energy Corporation's Pakini Nui 20.5 MW wind farm is now operating at South Point on the "Big Island" of Hawaii.

New wind farms in 2006:

Big Island: Hawi Renewable Development, 10 MW

Maui: Kaheawa Pastures, 30 MW

Wind flow, or motion of energy, can be harvested by wind turbines to make electricity. Wind-energy resources have increased in recent years, helped by new technology and federal tax credits for wind production. The state offers 20% tax credits for wind power installations, with residential customers receiving up to $1,500 in tax credits while commercial customers can get up to $500,000 in tax credits. Commercial wind turbines are connected to the electric utility grid to bring wind power to customers.

Hawaiian Electric Industries (HEI), HECO’s parent company, invested in the multi-million, 12-MW Kahuku wind farm in the 1980s. The wind farm was sold to the New World Power Corporation in 1993. Low production and equipment problems led to its shutdown, but the Kahuku project helped advance wind technology and gave valuable experience to Hawaii utilities.

Since then, wind technology has vastly improved. For example, the Kahuku wind farm produced 12 MW of power from 120 turbines. One modern wind turbine can make up to 5 MW of power, depending on size.

How wind energy works

--U.S. Department of Energy

Where’s the wind?

To help identify the best sites for future wind farms, HECO, with the State Department of Business, Economic Development and Tourism (DBEDT) and the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), commissioned a study to develop new, high-resolution wind resource maps for all the islands in its service territories.

Making wind work

Uneven wind gusts can cause havoc on smaller electric systems, resulting in fluctuations in electric frequency and voltage. To stabilize wind energy fluctuations, HECO invented the Electronic Shock Absorber (ESA), that was successfully tested at HELCO’s Lalamilo Wind Farm. The ESA aims to increase wind energy efficiency through a combination of power electronics and energy storage.  If successful, the HECO-patented invention could be applied to wind power projects for other small or isolated electric grids around the world. Read more about the ESA.

The Future of Wind

40 MW*

Shell WindEnergy announced plans to develop a 40 MW wind farm on Ulupalakua Ranch on Maui by 2008. Read more: Maui News, The Honolulu Advertiser, Honolulu Star-Bulletin.

27 MW*

Kaheawa Wind Power is considering an expansion of its Maui wind farm by up to 27MW (18 turbines).

And More! Additional projects are being pursued by HECO, Shell, Chevron, and other entities.

*Numbers are subject to change and may be more than potential estimates.